I was perusing Facebook this morning and read a post that stated “I ate so much last night I feel like a tick about to pop!” This got me thinking about why we eat to the point of discomfort? It happens a lot. It happens at holiday gatherings, parties, date nights and many times throughout the workday when we forget to eat a healthy snack in between meals; the result is overeating at lunch and dinner. While I will admit to a random stuffing from time to time, moderation wins every time. It is why I can still eat pizza, ice cream and drink a few beers periodically and continue to stay on track with my health and fitness goals. Here, I will show you an easy concept to help you do the same. It is called the Hunger Satiety Scale.

The concept is quite simple. The scale uses numbers 1-10 to help you judge hunger and how satisfied you feel throughout the day. It is ok to feel hunger because that is a clear sign that your body is requesting fuel. The problem lies in ignoring hunger. When you continue on with whatever project, meeting, or chore you are engaged in, ignoring your hunger cues, you may feel ravenous and overeat at your next meal. This is bad news for your weight loss efforts. In fact, overeating is often followed by guilt which is followed by over-restriction which sets you up for a good ol’ fashioned binge. Unhealthy eating habits have a cycle, friends, and I bet as you are reading this you are thinking “oh my....I have done this!”

Your objective, should you choose to accept it, is to get back in tune with your body and what it is telling you. It is recommended you stay between a 3 (Hunger = Ready to eat) and 6 (Comfortably full, satisfied). This may mean stopping mid-morning for a Greek Yogurt and an apple. You may have to stock protein bars in your desk drawer or brief case to combat the #3 feeling at 3PM vs. ignoring hunger until dinner.

If you follow the scale correctly, you will most likely be consuming 5-6 small meals/snacks throughout the day which is a concept supported by many fitness pro’s as a sound nutrition/weight loss strategy.

Will a strategy like this help you from overeating? Please comment below and let us know what works for you to keep from overeating!

A few small tweaks in your workout can produce BIG results and we’re going to show you how to do it!

I said “tweaking” not “twerking!” We’ll let Miley continue to perform her own unique brand of Zumba on stage and will use this blog to focus on fitness. Meanwhile, I want to show you how making tiny, calculated changes to your workout and nutrition can cause BIG results!

#1 Embrace the Principle of Overload: Fitness improvements are made when you stress or overload your muscles. If you perform a biceps curl with a 5lbs. dumbbell and fatigue between 8-12 reps, you have selected the right intensity. If you can perform 20+ reps with that same poundage, consider increasing the weight. Once you no longer stress the muscles your results slow to a screeching halt. Translation? If you are doing the same weights, reps, exercises that you did 6 months ago, it’s time to mix it up.

#2 Recovery: Did you know that if you get less than 5 hours of sleep for 4 consecutive nights your brain will perform as if you are intoxicated? Yep, sleep is that important. When you are in the gym you are breaking muscle down. When you sleep, your body repairs itself. Shoot for 7-7 1⁄2 hours each night. Oh, and if you get too little sleep your body produces more of a hormone that makes you crave carbs. Get some sleep!

#3 Recovery part II: If you strength train the same muscles in consecutive workouts they will not have time to recover and you can actually produce a negative result. If you perform total body workouts or take group strength classes like Body Pump consider replacing one of those workouts with a cardio workout like Spinning or Zumba.

#5 Small meals & snacks: Breakfast should be within 30 minutes of waking up. After that, eat like a baby! This means having a meal or small snack every 3-4 hours. Each meal/snack should contain both protein and a complex carbohydrate. Just about the time you start to get hungry, fuel up. You will find that it will help prevent overeating at lunch and dinner.

Need some help personalizing your workout? Throughout September Fitness Consultations are only $59 (normally $99). To schedule your session call Jeremy at 314-807-8634.

Check out the ways personal trainer Adam Flesner stays balanced in the midst of some BIG life changes!

By Adam Flesner, BS, CSCS, ACSM HFS

Everyone knows that life has its ups and downs. Most people would say they wish life only had its ups. However, what most people don’t realize is that those down moments in life are what really impact a person. When everything is going fine and dandy, it is easy to simply go through the motions of life and become a creature of habit. But, what happens to you when something drastic happens? How do you respond? Do you become negative and feel sorry for yourself? Or do you respond to situations and turn drastic changes into positive outcomes? What I have come to find in the past few years is that keeping life in balance makes responding to daily situations much easier. Let’s take a look at the 8 dimensions of wellness and how they can help you keep your life in balance.

The 8 dimensions of wellness include the following: emotional, financial, social, spiritual, occupational, physical, intellectual, and environmental. Being that I recently got engaged and am about to move to Tampa, Florida for graduate school, I have covered about half of the 8 dimensions of wellness. I work to cover the remaining dimensions with my deep faith and my big career goals. My fiancé and I are quickly planning the first few parts of the wedding because I move to Tampa in one month, and we want to make sure we have the venues planned and engagement pictures taken. It is stressful and I have to keep reminding myself of what is most important... our marriage. No matter how extravagant the wedding may be, we must realize that the wedding is only one day out of our lives... our marriage is for the rest of our lives. Pre marital counseling will help us to think about and answer questions that we wouldn’t think of otherwise. It will help us to cope effectively with life and will help us continue our satisfying relationship. Emotional dimension, check!

We have decided not to go too crazy on the wedding in order to save some money for a honeymoon and for getting our life started. Why spend all of our money on one day when we have the rest of our lives to live? Financial dimension, check!

I have been surrounded by amazing friends and family, which offer a terrific support system. Social dimension, check!

My fiancé and I each have a personal relationship with Christ and try to live as Christians through our actions as well as our words. Spiritual dimension, check!

I have been well educated through my bachelors degree and will further my education with my masters in Exercise and Nutrition Science. There are so many fraudulent products, ideas, and claims made in the fitness industry for people to try to make money and I have been given the proper education to be made aware of those things. Be skeptical of any product, idea, or claim and do your own research before making any purchases. Know the difference between real, evidence-based research versus some guy’s opinion. Intellectual dimension, check!

Working out has been like brushing my teeth everyday since I was a kid and has provided numerous benefits. I want to compete in bodybuilding and/or powerlifting in the future and have basically been training everyday for those events. This lifestyle has taught me discipline, responsibility, and work ethic. Physical dimension, check!

Being a personal trainer has taught me that you can love your job and make a living. I always feel bad for people that say their job is “just a job.” I love my job and have come to the understanding that if you are passionate about something and work hard enough, you can make a good living doing what you love. Occupational dimension, check!

Living in a positive, uplifting environment is crucial to happiness and prosperity. My fiancé and I are always supportive of each other, and we always help each other reach our goals. Environmental dimension, check!

The 8 dimensions of wellness have helped me to keep my life in balance and will continue to help me as I pursue the next chapters in my life. I hope that the examples I have provided will allow you to think about how you can utilize the 8 dimensions in your life. I encourage you to think about how each dimension of wellness can help you keep balance in your life.

Based upon my experiences and the graph defining the 8 dimensions of wellness, what can you do to work on balancing your wellness?

For most of us the opening day of bow season is less than two months away and I bet that at this moment, your coffee table is loaded with Cabelas catalogs and Field & Stream magazines. It’s a magical time of year for those of us who long to chase whitetails around the woods in the hopes of putting back straps in the freezer and Booner on the wall. You are already going over your camo inventory, starting to tune up/shoot your bow and hurrying to get your game cameras hung but I bet there is one thing many of you are not evening considering. It’s time to get in shape for bow season.

My plea to you is simple and it is something your outfitter wants to tell you but probably won’t: Please do not enter another bow season pudgy and out of shape. You may think there is nothing to sitting in a stand waiting for a big buck to stroll by but that couldn’t be further from the truth. This article isn’t as much a “how to” as a “why” blog, so sit back and let me state the case why now is the time to add a fitness program to your pre-season preparation.

#1 Max out your overall enjoyment:Every Fall I have the same conversation with my grandfather. Notorious for not being able to sit in a stand for more than 15 minutes, gramps is a stalker. Unfortunately, as he approaches 80 years old, he doesn’t have the gas to get up and down the hills anymore, at least for the first few weeks of the season. Once he has gotten out and walked up and down hills for a few days, something magical happens. His fitness levels improve, he has more energy and his overall mood goes from grumpy to optimistic and positive. Even if you don’t touch a dumbbell, make it a point to get out and walk prior to opening day. Now, if I can just get to him to walk year round……

#2 Build your bow muscles:Simply stated, the stronger you are the easier it is to pull back your bow! One of my favorite things to do is train clients for BIG hunts. When my client, Joe, called and said “get me ready for an archery elk hunt” I was like “ALRIGHT, let’s get down to business!” The stronger you are the more arrows you can fling accurately during practice sessions (and practice for longer periods of time without fatiguing). It will also allow you to pull back effortlessly and hold steady when the buck you have been watching on camera all summer walks below your stand. By the way, when Joe’s 6 X 6 came barreling down the mountain he was able to kneel, draw and fire in one glorious motion. He still talks about that moment to this day and the value of getting physically strong for the hunt and he has the antlers on his wall to prove it.

#3 No bow shot in the field is anything like shooting at the range:Having a strong core and the flexibility to rotate your trunk is a necessary ability because your buck probably isn’t going to walk to 15 yards in front of your stand and turn perfectly broadside. Bucks don’t get big antlers by being stupid so you have to be ready to turn, twist and shoot from a seated position if he walks in from behind.

#4 Getting in, out and all over the woods:I am a purist and hate driving ATV’s into the woods. I just really enjoy the walk in the early morning with only the stars to light my path. Likewise, I enjoy the trip out in the evening with the setting sun at dusk turning the sky into a kaleidoscope of pinks, purples and reds. To me, driving an ATV directly to my stand sucks the wildness out of my adventure and I take a lot of pride in slipping as quietly as I can from the house to my stand of choice. There are also going to be moments when you are going to have to crawl on your belly, climb hills, traverse gullies and we haven’t even discussed climbing into and out of your stands. For the simple action of getting from point A to point B on your property as quickly, quietly and as stealthy as possible, please consider scheduling some regular gym time.

#5 Hauling your deer out of the woods:I have had deer drop in wide open fields where I can drive the truck right up to load my kill but more times than not, I end up dragging them through ditches, briars and patches of honeysuckle before I can get them loaded up. That takes muscular strength, endurance and good cardiovascular fitness but even if you can drive right up to the animal, deer are heavy. Having a strong core, legs and back will allow you to load your trophy and minimize the risk of straining your back and ruining not just your hunt but potentially the rest of your bow season.

Don’t worry friends. We can still have our mid-morning naps, biscuits & gravy and a few beers around the campfire to celebrate the day’s hunt. We aren’t taking the REALLY good perks of deer camp away (I’m encouraging exercise not complete craziness) but we are asking you to think about your pre-season preparation in a different light this year. Add some fitness to your hunting preparation and get ready for a whole new hunting experience this fall.

Read Jeremy’s 8 tips he and his family utilized to stay fit and healthy while at the beach!

I was off the last few weeks with my family relaxing and rejuvenating on the beach (New IWC trainer Adam Flesner held down the fort while we were gone and did a phenomenal job…thanks Adam!). I am a firm believer in enjoying vacation but not letting time off completely derail my family’s fitness and nutrition habits. Here are some tips Beth and I used to keep fit and lean while enjoying ourselves on the beach!

Determine your objective ahead of time: Beth and I worked out 5-6 days per week and ate very clean prior to vacation. This was NOT the goal when we arrived at the beach. Aside from having fun, our objective from was to do no harm and return weighing and looking the same (albeit more tan) as we did before we left; not to continue losing body fat or build muscle. One to two workouts per seven days will be enough for you to maintain your fitness level.

Scope out the local amenities: While the condo we stayed in did not have a fitness center, the local community center had a free fitness room which was a huge score! There were also well maintained biking paths that work well for cycling, walking and jogging. Before Jeremy gashed his foot in an unfortunate beach umbrella accident, He was performing HIIT Intervals at the fitness center 2 days/week and running once a week.

Strategically offset calorie intake: While we use the 85% Rule of clean eating at home, vacation isn’t quite so strict (why do rum runners have to be so delicious?). I used Designs for Health Whey Protein shakes every morning for breakfast and had light, healthy lunches to offset the…”other” calories consumed in the afternoon and evening. Hey, even trainers need to cut loose once in a while. There was also a large supply of fresh fruit and Designs for Health Paleo and PB Meal bars in the condo to snack on and get quality nutrition. On vacation, our 85% rule was probably the 65% Rule…but it is vacation and we made it a point to enjoy the local seafood but not eat junk 24/7.

Stick to your supplement routine: As previously stated, our nutrition wasn’t as solid as it is at home which made it very important to stick to our supplement routine which included these Design for Health products:

Plan Active Activities: Over the two weeks I golfed three times and while this isn’t the same as running three miles, it is participating in moderate physical activity. One day we rented bikes which allowed us to tour the island and get some cardio as a family. We also walked the beach everyday looking for shells and fossilized shark teeth which kept us up and out of our beach chairs.

No gym?: If your beach destination doesn’t have a gym or you simply prefer exercising outdoors check out my beach exercise video and enjoy:

Sunsets: Watch as many of them as possible. They are good for the soul.

Sunscreen: Most people think they cannot get tan with a sunscreen of 30+. That is a myth. We use 50 on us and the kids and we are very, very tan. All sunscreen does is prevent burns and possibly something worse like skin cancer. Wear it and reapply often. Just because it says it is waterproof doesn’t mean it doesn’t wash off (something we all learned the hard way….ouch.)

After I gashed my foot, I wasn’t able to lift or run but was able to stick to my nutrition strategy, walk the beach with the help of some gauze & waterproof tape and sneak in one more round of golf (I had to adapt a little bit). Our goal on vacation was to have fun but not come back with bad habits or expanding waist lines. Exercise and nutrition is a big part of who we are but it is also important to have balance and most importantly, some fun. Before you hit the beach, think about your vacation objectives, scope out the local fitness opportunities and consider your nutrition strategy. Plan these things out ahead of time and you will be very, very happy with your beach experience!

Relationships define who we are and our overall wellness. Here is a brief glimpse into the beauty and power of the relationship between a mother and son.

My day ended up with me sitting in a chair due to an unfortunate accident with a beach umbrella. A bummer, but if I have to sit in a chair due to a foot injury, it might as well be on the beach. Still, it is funny how things turn out when your perspective changes from looking for shells and shark teeth to really observing your surroundings. Yes, a gash in the foot is no fun, but because I got to witness a precious moment between a mother and her son, I am going to say the foot injury was worth it.

I am no relationship expert but building strong relationships with friends and family is a big component of maintaining a high level of personal wellness. As I sat in my beach chair contemplating when I had my last tetanus shot, I caught view of a gentleman holding the left arm of his elderly mother as he helped guide her across the soft and potentially treacherous sand to get to the water’s edge. In her right hand was a cane and it was clear she was very frail.

I continued watching them for a few moments. As they reached the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, they turned facing the water and just stood together in the surf letting the gentle flow of the water bathe her feet. They stood there together, his arm being the stabilizing force for his mother to experience a simple pleasure in life and I wondered if perhaps she did the same for him when he was a little boy. It was beautiful.

I am glad my sunglasses were on because I did get misty-eyed. Ironically, no one on the beach besides me and my wife noticed this event. Everyone was off doing their own thing but Beth and I were privileged to witness a rare and precious moment.

I don’t know what the relationship between your mother and father is like but I do know that time is fleeting and while it seems like we have a hundred years to get this thing right, we never know when the next time we see our parents might be the last. My suggestion: If you do have conflict, communicate and make sure you have more precious moments than tense. Oh, and never miss a chance to tell them how you feel.

As I lead my boys to the water’s edge to watch the sunset, I now fast forward 60 years in my mind and wonder what it will be like when they lead Dad to the water.

I have a lot of places in this world that help me tap into the spiritual side of wellness. I love to hunt and be in the woods. I also love to fish and float clear, cold Ozark streams. Still, there is something magical about the Gulf of Mexico and this tiny, out-of-the-way island I am standing on that makes me feel as if I have stepped back in time 50 years. It makes me happy.

The moment I see the blue-green water, anything that was bothering me mere seconds before seems to disappear. As my toes squish into the sand and the smell of the salt air hits my nose, worry is replaced with joy. Finally, as the sun begins to set with the wind blowing through my hair as the waves crash into the shoreline, it sounds like a symphony about to hit its crescendo. I feel something massively bigger than myself. I feel peace. There are many amazing places on this earth and this is one of them.

Just try to watch this for 30 seconds without feeling more at ease and peaceful! I bet you can't do it!

We live in a fast-paced and stressful world and it has been said that uncontrolled stress can be as damaging to your body as smoking and obesity combined. For optimal health, you need a happy place, but with careers, responsibilities, kids, deadlines and more, how do you get to your happy place?

Plan: We aren’t just talking about marking some dates on a calendar. The happy place I am typing from right now isn’t exactly cheap which brings into play the financial wellness component. Budgeting and saving so you can get your toes in the sand or on a Colorado mountain top is absolutely essential. If you don’t consciously make an effort to save for your trip, that trip may never happen. Plan to get to your happy place. As often as possible.

Phone Video: The little video you watched above is an easy way to visit your happy place anytime or anywhere you wish. I have several little videos of various sunsets and moments stored on my phone so no matter where in the world (or work day) I am, I can instantly visit my little island for a 30 second break from reality. Trips are expensive and you may not get to your happy place on an annual basis. A short video allows you to visit (at no cost) anytime you wish.

When we were kids we could get lost in our own imagination but somewhere along the trail, we have forgotten how to do this. All the more reason we all need our personal happy place; A magical place to get lost, to feel like a kid again and to dream. It’s out there. Where is your happy place?

Stay well, my friends,

Jeremy

Author

Jeremy Koerber, MA is the owner of Integrated Wellness Concepts. An ASCM certified Health Fitness Specialist with 17 years’ experience in the health and fitness industry, his philosophy is to create wellness plans and exercise programming that focuses on integrating physical and nutritional concepts into his client's lifestyles that fit their objectives, interests and personality.